TH Bottle Project FAQ (PDF)

Trash Hero Bottles & Program - Indonesia
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1.

What is the “big picture” goal of the Bottles Program?
Answer: The mission of the Bottles program is simple – get people to change
their behavior and refuse single-use plastic products, and to reduce (and
ultimately eliminate) the amount of single-use plastic products that enter into
the environment by offering affordable, reusable alternatives.

2.

How much does it cost for a business to buy a TH water bottle?
Answer: Bottles can be purchased by businesses from Trash Hero for 85,000rp
each. This is how much the bottles cost from the supplier (80,000rp) + the
average transportation cost around Indonesia (5,000rp). Trash Hero makes
zero (0) profit from the water bottle program.
Our bottles are made from stainless steel so they are resistant and long-lasting,
they are 750ml with a Trash Hero logo and a mention “Love Indonesia”, or
“Love Bali” or “Love Komodo” or other area depending on order quantities.

(see a Thailand bottle here for example)


3.

How much are the bottles sold to customers for?
Answer: Bottles can be sold to customers for 130,000rp each. It is important
that the bottles are offered at an affordable price to encourage customers to
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buy them. We also don’t want price competition between Trash Hero bottle
program participants. Therefore bottles can only be sold for 130,000rp –
no more, no less.


4.

How many bottles can my business order?
Answer: As many as you think you can sell! Because Trash Hero pays for the
cost of the bottles when they are ordered from the supplier, you must pay the
full amount for all of the bottles you order at the time of your order. One box
includes 60 bottles but you can order less than 60 if you would like.


5.

What else comes printed on the bottles in addition to the Trash Hero
logo?
Answer: Every bottle will have the Trash Hero logo. There will also be the
separate phrase “Love INDONESIA” or “Love BALI” or “Love KOMODO”. In
areas where there are many businesses participating in the bottle program, the
location may be more specific, such as “Love Bali” or “Love Komodo”, providing
we have enough orders to produce them. We need 500 bottles to be able to do
so.


If you would like to add your business’ name or logo to the bottles, in
addition to the Trash Hero logo, you must order a minimum of 100
bottles. This is the minimum custom order amount from the supplier. Our
supplier will quote you directly this extra cost and invoice you, so it is
transparent.


You should also feel free to put stickers with your company logo on the bottles.
6.



How do I order the bottles?
Answer: Send an email to your local Trash Hero chapter (find your local
chapter contact information at https://trashhero.org/chapters/), or to the main
group at info@trashhero.org.


7.

Ok, I have ordered some bottles to sell to my customers. Now what?
Answer: Now you must set up a free refill station. It is a requirement of
participating in the Trash Hero bottle program that if you sell the bottles, you
must also offer free refills of drinking water to anyone with a Trash Hero water
bottle – no matter where the bottle was purchased! This is because it would
defeat the purpose of the bottle program if people had to buy water in plastic
bottles in order to refill their reusable water bottles.


Having a free drinking water refill station is a requirement of participating in
the Trash Hero Reusable Water Bottles Program.
Trash Hero Indonesia is teaming up with http://www.social-impakt.com/ to
offer Nazava water filters as an alternative to water gallons or bottles. If you
wish to purchase a water filter to provide clean drinkable tap water, please let
us know when you are ordering the bottle and we will get back to you with
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details. Filter start as low as 280,000Rp and lasts up to 24 months. Please see
the detailed costs below.


8.

What’s a “refill station”?
Answer: A refill station is an easily accessible area within your business location
where customers can refill their Trash Hero water bottles with clean, safe
drinking water for free. Typically, this will be an area at the front of the shop or
restaurant, or in the lobby of a resort, where a water dispenser machine or a
Nazava filter is set up. The refill station must be clearly marked as a “Trash
Hero Refill Station” – we have posters and banners we can provide to you to
mark the refill station location.


Here’s an example of a refill station in Thailand:








While you can offer water in a way other than a water dispenser machine, such
as from a pitcher or other vessel, a water dispenser machine will make
customers feel most comfortable that the drinking water you offer is safe and
clean for drinking. And we want people to feel comfortable refilling the
reusable water bottles – otherwise they will still buy plastic water bottles!


9.

Won’t my business lose money by giving away free refills?
Answer: The only way you can lose money is if you offer free refills, but only
sell very, very few bottles.


o For example: You buy the bottles for 85,000 IDR each from Trash Hero,
and you sell them to customers for 130,000 IDR each. That means you
have 45,000 IDR initial profit from each bottle, minus taxes of 10% is left
40,900 IDR per bottle.


o In Nusa Lembongan (for example), 19 liter “big bottles” or gallons of
drinking water (the kind used in water dispensers) can be purchased for
30,000 IDR each. We know price varies around the country so we took
this example as an average.


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o If you sell 10 bottles, you make 409,000 IDR profit. That will buy 13
gallons of drinking water. If you sell 7 bottles, you make 280,000 IDR and
that will buy you a water filter.


o Each Trash Hero water bottle holds 750ml of water. This means each
gallon of water in your refill station will refill 25 Trash Hero bottles (19,000
÷ 750 = 25). The cost of a refill is therefore 1,200 IDR


o So, if you sell just 10 bottles, the only way for you to lose money is if you
give over 34 refills of 700ml PER BOTTLE!




o The more bottles you sell, the more money you have to cover the cost of
refills – and the more you get to keep as profits!

Over the last year, even our busiest refill stations in areas where thousands of
bottles have been sold only give out at the most, 80-100 refills per day. So
don’t worry, as long as you sell the bottles, there’s no chance you’ll lose
money. In fact, you’ll make a nice little profit!
If you want to make the profit even higher AND not use plastic gallons
anymore, get a water filter from our partner Social Impakt, the cost of the
water is divided by 30 as you are using tap water. The filter lasts 24 months
and all is needed is a clean every week. Please see details on their website:
http://www.social-impakt.com/waterfilters.
We are making ZERO profit from the filter sales, we just think it is a great and
economic solution!

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Together We Make a Difference!



10. What about my plastic water bottle sales? Won’t I lose money if
people stop buying plastic water bottles?
Answer: Maybe! But, choosing reusable bottles over single-use plastic bottles is
a choice “for heart” – it’s about taking care of our world, together. In fact, you
can choose to simply stop selling plastic water bottles or offering glass bottles
as well that can be recycled. Many businesses in the Trash Hero water bottle
program have stopped selling plastic water bottles completely, and report no
complaints from customers!


11. Can my resort/hotel save money by switching from plastic bottles in
rooms to Trash Hero reusable water bottles?
Answer: Yes! Resorts that have switched from providing two plastic water
bottles in each room to instead putting Trash Hero bottles in the rooms are
saving money every day.


o

In a lot of resorts, normally is provided two 0.5 liter bottles in each room
at a cost to the resort of roughly 3,000 IDR per bottle, or 6,000 IDR total
per room, per day. If a resort has only 10 rooms, the overall cost to the
resort using plastic bottles is 1,800,000 IDR per month.

o

In contrast, a Trash Hero water bottle costs just 1,200 IDR to refill, or
2,400 IDR per day per room for 2 bottles – saving the resort 3,600 IDR
per day, per room! If you have just 10 rooms, that’s a savings of
1,080,000 IDR per month! And so many plastic bottles that you are not
throwing away anymore!

o

And don’t forget – many customers will want to buy the bottles and take
them home, which not only saves the resort/hotel money, but actually
makes a profit for your business!







12. Ok, selling the Trash Hero water bottles won’t hurt my business. But
how will selling the bottles help my business?
Answer: More and more, customers are voting their personal values by
choosing to spend their money at businesses that are environmentally
responsible. Selling the Trash Hero water bottles tells your customers you care
about more than just money – you also care about them, and the world we all
share!


More than that, it also brings customers to your door! By having a refill station,
potential customers who already own the Trash Hero water bottle will seek out
your business to refill those bottles (20, 50 or 100 refills a day means that
many customers in the door each day!). And once they are in the door, they
can’t help but notice all the wonderful products and services you have to offer.
Selling the Trash Hero water bottle is a great way to get customers to see your
business – something every business owner wants!


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And then of course there are the positive reviews you get by giving a little
extra value for your customers and your community. Here is just a sample of
the reviews received by actual business that participate in the Bottle Program:













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